by Jerry Senn
Surveys have revealed the reason more Christians don’t speak to others about the Bible, faith and salvation is a seemingly simple reason. That reason is “fear.”
We should not be ashamed of this failing but just admit our fears and pray for God’s help in overcoming this roadblock to sharing our faith.
Paul spoke to young Timothy regarding this important issue. “God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control” (2 Tim 1:7). The apostles of Jesus all ran away when evil men took Jesus away into the night to be tried and killed (except for Peter and John).
However, listen to their courageous expression of faith after Jesus’ resurrection. Though Peter and John had also had their reluctance in times of timidity before Jesus rose, listen to their courageous defense before the Jewish Council.
“This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:8-13).
Of course these men had unique access to Jesus, knowing him face to face. We do not have this privilege. But, we have no reason to be intimidated by evil forces around us. There’s no reason for our timidity, except fear, driven by lack of genuine faith in the same Jesus.
Our courage flows from receiving the amazing love of God which brought salvation to us in Jesus. In that respect we are also expected to “speak” about Jesus with boldness and courage, with gentleness and a spirit of peaceful confidence.
“Only he who can say,
‘The Lord is my strength,’
can say,
‘of whom shall I be afraid?’”
(Alexander Maclaren)